The Hero & The Bandit
by Darkwolve45
Summary: Finn has been betrayed by all of Ooo, being accused of planning to destroy the world due to his human heritage, he finds the most unlikely ally when no one else will stand up for him, what will the hero uncover as he tries to clear his name and survive? Rated M for violence, death, etc, and sexual themes. I DO NOT OWN ADVENTURE TIME. IT BELONGS TO IT'S RESPECTABLE OWNERS.
1. Ch 1: Jail Cell

**Disclaimer: I do not own Adventure Time, rights go to the respectable owners.**

 **Author Note: Well here is the first chapter for my second story, "The Hero & The Bandit" I thought of this when I was writing chapter 9 of "Finn's Soul." Pretty much it is a strange ship of Finn and Bandit Princess. I don't know why, but I thought it would be fun to write and for you all to read. Anyway let me know through your reviews and messages if you like it, if you lovely readers don't then I will just leave it as a One-Shot story for later development or something like that haha.**

 **12/27/2016 Edit: Had to change the name of something in the story to make more sense with the translation.**

 **You're all lovely readers!**

Finn eyes opened to see a stone ceiling above him, he felt pain shoot through his head as he blinked and tried to sit up. "What the flip, it feels like my head is going to explode." Finn complained in pain as he held his head with his dirt covered hands. His hair was cut to a short length. He panicked for a moment before realizing his hat was now sown to a blue hoodie he had received as a present from Raggedy Princess. He pulled the hood over his head, and looked at himself. His seventeen year old body was badly bruised and cut across his body, his pants and shirt had burn marks on them. It then came back to him at that moment that he was tased with enough electricity to knock even him out. By the banana guards. Finn began panic as he ran over to the bars of the candy dungeon and began to call out for a guard. "Hey there is some mistake, it's me Finn!"

The teenager was hyperventilating as no one had come to his request. "What the fuck is going on, why am I locked up?" Finn asked out loud not noticing his cell mate laugh behind him in a rude yet excited feminine voice. "Why look at this, looks like the human is now on the level of a criminal, the one and only Hero of Ooo, betrayed and stuck with the one who he threw in prison." When Finn turned around he was greeted by a woman around his age sitting against the wall that had pale white skin and a blue dress like robe with dark brown stockings that went up to her knees. She had dark grey hair on her head that went in between her large darkening horns, she was grinning a dark sharp toothed grin as her olive green eyes made contact with Finn's baby blue eyes. Finn didn't recognize her right away since she had grown her hair back from where she shaved it. "Bandit Princess!" Finn exclaimed as he felt his heart beat increase. "I can smell your anxiety from here, don't worry I won't kill you, if I had the intention you wouldn't have woken up." She stated this emotionlessly as her grin faded causing Finn to gulp and completely face her. "What do you mean betrayed? There is no way Bubblegum betrayed me, we are like best of friends. I'm sure as hell am not a criminal like you!" Finn yelled out boldly as he felt his head get light from all the confusion. The reply made his heart and hope sink. "Sadly hero that is the truth, you were betrayed by your friend and falsely accused of planning to destroy the world because of your human heritage. Sadly a lot of people believed this and your 'friend' couldn't let herself be seen in a bad spotlight with the other Kingdoms of Ooo. So you're in the dungeons with me, they hoped I would kill you and then they could execute me for killing you and then take over my Kingdom." Bandit Princess stood up with a smile, stretching out as she let out a purr like sigh of relief. "Too bad for them I need you alive, and I'm not one for holding a grudge on someone like you who sticks to their beliefs. We are similar in a way Finn, except my beliefs are bad too you." She cackled loudly, holding her stomach as she thought she was amusing, even though Finn was completely silent.

"So what's going to happen? This will get resolved as only rumors right?" Finn was clinging to this last bit of hope as he asked these questions, only for Bandit Princess to shatter them like glass. "Your execution will be in an hour and displayed for all of Ooo to see. I'm sure many want to save you or stop this, but there is no time and they can't stand against every Kingdom of Ooo."

Tears went down Finn's face as he fell into a depressed state, fearful of death and his heart was crushed knowing no one would even try to defend him. "Why even bother telling me this? Is this one finale 'fuck you' for everything!?" Finn screamed at her, not knowing what emotion he felt as he had an expression of rage and sadness. Bandit Princess slapped him hard across the face causing Finn to go silent and look at her, rubbing the stinging mark on the side of his face. "wha-" Finn was cut off by the serious stare and tone of his former enemy. "Listen to me, I am trying to help you, but you need to calm yourself the fuck down or it will be too late!" Finn was silent as he looked into her eyes and nodded as he took slow deep breaths, his heart rate slowing down to normal as Bandit Princess continued to speak. "Now I have a means of escape for the both of us, but if we do this we will have virtually nothing to go back to, only each other understand me? Nod once for yes, twice for no." Finn replied with a single nod with gained him a surprisingly soft and mischievous smile "Good, now I have a relic from my kingdom that allows me to create a portal to any location I desire. The downside is it takes three full months for me to use it again. It belonged originally to the King of Thieves, but he gave it to the Bandit Kingdom to keep the peace between the two, it's called the Oculus Quaerere." Bandit Princess reached into her cleavage nonchalantly causing Finn to cover his eyes as his cheeks turned bright red. "Look dumbass." Finn uncovered his eyes to see an amulet around Bandit Princess' neck, it was designed as a flat circular gold eye with a purple gem for the pupil. Finn blinked as he looked at their means of escape. " _This is our way out?"_ He thought as he watched Bandit Princess walk over to a wall with the amulet holding it up as she closed her eyes and took a deep breath, her horns beginning to shine white as the amulet began to generate a beam, creating a circular portal slowly. Finn was excited, but then he grew weary. "I'm alright with throwing everything away, but what will happen to those I care about? Especially my brother."

Bandit Princess spoke without any movement or opening her eyes as the human grew closer to her. "Well if I had to guess they would only be questioned a lot for your whereabouts and etcetera. They only want you died, not other important figures of Ooo. So I feel it would be better if we survive rather than contemplate our last rites in this cell." Finn nodded in agreement well speaking wearily. "Ya, I want to figure this out and find a way to clear both our names, since you will be tied to me soon as an accomplice, I refuse to allow these bastard to play use like we are puppets."

Bandit Princess let out a surprised chuckle at this as the portal was finished, the beam fading from the amulet as the purple gem changed its color to green. "well let's get going then." Bandit Princess stated with anticipation. Suddenly loud footsteps were approaching their cell from the entrance. Humanoid robots made of sharp steel surrounding them, one changing its arm to a firearm as their red soulless eyes locked onto their targets. Gun fire filled the room as Bandit Princess let out a terrified shriek that even caught herself off guard. She closed her eyes tight afraid that her life was already over. She felt someone grab her and run through the portal shielding her with their own body, the portal quickly blinking out of existence behind them. She opened her eyes to see Finn holding her bridal style, blood coming from the edge of his mouth as he gritted his teeth with an agonizing expression. "Why did you shield me like that you fucking dumbass!? Are you trying to get yourself killed!" The only response she got as she was placed on the ground left her with her mouth agape. "You saved me by allowing me to escape with you, so my body just moved… I don't want to lose anyone important." Finn collapsed onto the dried grass next to Bandit Princess, the two in a ravine in the Grasslands, far from any kingdoms. She quickly moved to check his vitals, his pulse was slow but steady, she quickly removed his bloody jacket and blue t-shirt, exposing three bullet hole in his back, thankfully they had gone straight through and missed his vital organs. Bandit Princess let out a sigh as she quickly got to business to bandage and disinfect Finn's wounds. Praying to Glob that she wouldn't lose her new partner in crime and possibly only true friend.

 **Well there it is ladies and gentleman. I was very excited with writing this and Chapter 13 for "Finn's Soul" since my writers block is finally ending. Hope you all enjoyed the stories and have a wonderful day!**


	2. Ch 2: Bandit

**Author Note: Time for the second chapter! I am pretty tired and unsure if I will release another chapter this week. Maybe next week, but I do promise to continue working on both stories, so don't worry. Anyway I have been excited to work on this since a lot of you lovely readers have been looking forward to it. So enjoy and hope you all have a lovely day!**

 **P.S: I had to change the name of the Oculus amulet to make more sense since I got the Latin wrong.**

 **You're all lovely readers!**

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The sun was setting as Bandit Princess clashed a piece of flint against stone near a pile of dry twigs and leaves. The sparks clashed against the dry plant material and combusted into a small fire, lighting up the small cave in the ravine. Bandit was sitting on a flat stone near the fire, she was deep in thought and was startled by moans of discomfort nearby. She looked across the cave to see Finn unconscious with his shirt and jacket folded into a square and laid under his head. Finn's chest was covered in bandages, three dry blood stains across the bandages. Bandit Princess bit her lip as she gazed at the human's pale bare muscular chest. "Not bad, not bad at all." She shook her head as shameful thoughts filled her mind. She let out a sigh as Finn settled back into a deep slumber as the pain faded again. "So far you heal pretty fast, but you are way too risky with your life, I get the feeling you're not going to be the most cooperative partner in crime, but we only have each other now, so I guess I can settle with this result for now." Bandit Princess said this to an unconscious Finn with frustration in her voice as she gazed from Finn to the fire.

"I honestly looked up to heroes when I was a child… even through the rabies and the love I was never given as a child. Yet when I needed one of you heroes the most…. You failed to save me." Tears began to well up in her eyes as the sad memories returned to her like an old wound being re-opened. Her mind flashed back to the time twelve years ago when she was only six, her horns were only small grey stubs on her head, she had a long ponytail and a lime green blouse with a black skirt that went down to her knees, she was barefoot at the time. She shook at the memory as it played without pause like a dream.

She was at her grandparents' house, the only people who showed her love and taught her about her family history and how to live in the world. She remembered the smile, the happy memories, the birthday parties, the stories and fairy tales about heroes bringing hope and saving those in their time of need. Then it flashed to the night that tore her fragile world to pieces.

The child ran through the house giggling innocently as her grandfather chased her, trying to tickle her as he let out a raspy toned chuckle, his grey skin wrinkled and a white circle beard being the only hair on the horned old man's head. His horns were looped like a ram's. He wore a red knitted sweater and black pajama pants. The house was a simple rectangular building with an open doorway between the kitchen, dining room, and living room. The only doorway with a door was the bedroom of the child's grandparents. Her grandmother was smiling on the couch with a light blue knitted sweater over her black full body dress, she had her grey hair in a bun with shorter horns that were similar to her husband's horns. A decorated pine tree was in the corner of the living room as the grandfather finally caught the child and began to tickle her. Everything was happy on a snowy holiday celebrated throughout Ooo by many, some differently, some the same as the horned family. Yet the day began to turn in a different direction as a loud ruthless knock at the door caused the child to flinch and the family to go silent. The grandfather's face grew serious as he stood up from the child with fists clenched, the grandmother had a concerned look as her husband answered the front door revealing a hooded figure with light steel armor plating covering his chest, shoulders, and ankles. He held a sharp shining dagger that made chills fill the air and frighten the child as she watched the blade be driven into her grandfather several times as the man screamed in sadistic joy. "For the Blood King! Die heretics!" The grandfather didn't go down easily though, he held the man back with a enraged rawr, his old body not allowing him to overpower the attacker as blood poured from his fatal wounds like a fountain. "Get Cleo out of here now!" He screamed with a new found energy as the attacker laughed, their eyes filled with murderous intent. The grandmother picked up the child known as Cleo and ran to the bedroom taking out the Oculus Quaerere amulet and using it with mastery as the portal formed within several seconds, showing the Candy Kingdom gates. Cleo felt hope fill her chest, knowing help and heroes were within reach. Suddenly her grandmother's body stiffened as blood flowed from the corner of her mouth, before the woman gritted her teeth and falling through the portal with the child in her arms as it closed behind them, leaving the murderer with a disappointed yet sadistically cruel expression. The girl began to cry as guards rushed to their aid, no one else dared to help in fear of the horned stranger. The grandmother's eyes were glazed, a stab wound through her back leading to her heart clearly visible and soaking her clothes and the snow around them with blood. She placed the amulet around the child's neck and smiled, mouthing 'I love you, my beautiful princess.' before her body went limp and her gaze faded. The last thing in the memory being a wail of tears.

Bandit Princess, or Cleo didn't realize she was crying until the memory faded, several tears stained the stone below her, she wiped her eyes quickly leaving the red tint around her eyelids as the only reminder that the tough as nails bandit was crying. She had no idea why the memory had arisen in her mind until she looked at Finn, reminding her that someone was hurt try to protect her, that no one would save them from the damnation that would fill their lives. A weak smile crossed her face though as she gazed at her partner. " _At least I have you, thank Glob you didn't die ya crazy jackass."_ She thought as her heart lifted with ease, before she let out a tomboyish laugh, her sharp white teeth exposed as she felt herself return to normal once again.

An hour passed, the array of stars and the moon in the sky replacing the light of the sun. Cleo was thankful she made a fire, because that's all the stars and moon did in place of the sun. The night was complex to her, it always seemed to be cold and depressing, yet beautiful and mysterious at the same time. Her attention snapped towards Finn when she heard movement from his direction. Finn was awake, holding his sore wounds as he winced from the sudden movement of waking up. "What the fuck happened?" He didn't even bother to prevent himself from cussing, he was too fatigued, and in pain to even care. "You were shot, by playing your idiotic role as 'hero' you dumbass, thank Glob you gained a minor amount of my respect, and that I need you alive." Cleo hissed the last part, causing Finn to look down in guilt, a frown forming on his face as he let out a dejected murmur. "Oh…" She sighed at his reaction and gave him a half smile. "Hey I didn't mean to be ass about it, look can we just look forward to the fact that you did save both our hides and that you're alive?" Finn's moral seemed to lift at Cleo's words causing both of them to smile at each other.

Finn moved closer to Cleo by the fire, he did not know what to think of their current situation, his mind was still anchored on the hard truth that no one would save him, no matter how many he saved before this had occurred. He felt tears fall down his face as he felt a deep cut to his heart, betrayal from his closest friends, and family. He thought back to when he was only a baby and he went 'boom boom' on a leaf and fell on it. No one would help him as he cried out, until after so long Margret and Joshua, his adoptive parents took him in. He felt so alone then, and that's how he felt now. He felt a hard pat on his back, knocking the air out of him slightly, turning to see a raised eyebrow from his former enemy. "Hey Finn did I tell you my name yet?" She asked with curiosity, causing Finn's own curiosity to rise over his depressed state. "No I don't think you have, but wouldn't you prefer to be called Princess? You are of royalty after all right?" Finn asked this question boldly which only earned him a mischievous smirk, making him regret his wording quickly. "Why aren't you such a gentleman, sadly I don't care for that formality crap when it comes to those I trust. My name is Cleo, remember it well. Besides I'm not respected as a Princess among other kingdoms. They only see a bandit, a criminal… An animal." Cleo had a teasing tone, but it grew dark when she mentioned how other kingdoms saw her. Finn took the moment to return the favor from earlier by patting her back, but more gently than she had to him. "I don't see you like that… Not anymore anyway, you're the only one who hasn't betrayed me and left me to die, even if you have committed so much evil in the past, I can still find it in my heart to forgive you, because you were the light in my darkest moment." Cleo was awe-struck before she began to roar with laughter, tears streaming down her eyes from laughing too hard. "Glob you're so cheesy! Go take your shift as look out, I need some sleep." Cleo was still laughing as she took Finn's jacket that was on his shoulder and used it as a pillow well she she curled up in the fetal position for warmth not too far from the fire, Finn let out a sigh as soft snoring began to fill the room, leaving him to maintain the fire and remain on watch for any hunting parties. Though Finn knew almost every part of the Grasslands by heart, the ravine they were in was far to the east of the Tree Fort, his home. The area was separated by very thick and deadly swamps, only small villages or tribes habiting the area. The ravine would be hidden without investigation for what Finn could assume to be two week at most. "So far the closest kingdom would be… Lizard Kingdom if I'm right, thankfully they are a closed off kingdom. That should buy us more time if any kingdom is foolish enough to enter their territory without their consent." Finn knew they would not have much time so he tried to think of all the factors in the area, then he remembered he had nothing on him besides a small amount of money in pockets and his clothes. "Fuck, so I'm left with my fists in one of the most dangerous areas of Ooo. Alright calm down Finn, we can do this, we just need to find a weapon at some point." Finn said to himself trying to stop doubt and anxiety from gaining a foothold on his mind, but the floodgates were already open, Finn's knee was bouncing as he tried to think of where he could get a weapon without being spotted easily, he was almost impossible to miss after all. "Fuck, fuck, fuck!" Finn began to panic until a rock smacked against his face from Cleo's direction, Finn's surprised filled eyes meeting an obviously tired and annoyed glare from Cleo. "Shut the fuck up already, I have some tools, and I know where we can find some loot, now shut up already so I can sleep, I didn't stay up all day and tend to your injuries just to be woken up by your boo-hoeing!" Cleo growled and quickly faded back to sleep leaving Finn silent with a dumbfounded expression, the only sound the crackling of the fire and the sounds of the wilderness outside. _"Mental note: Cleo is very grumpy and hostile if you disturb her sleep."_ As the thought passed by with the time Finn was left to be lookout, he felt his body begin to grow stiff as he struggled to stay awake, but it had been a long day for him as well, he laid several feet from Cleo and began to fade into the welcoming arms of slumber once he was sure the ravine and cave was completely safe for the night.

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 **End Note: So there is chapter two, I hope you all like the name and backstory I have for Bandit Princess, I tried to go for tomboyish name to fit with her character. I am tired as hell, but I hope all of you enjoyed this chapter, I was having a lot of fun writing this when I was not covered in chores or writer's block. Hope you all have a lovely day. Thank you very much for the support and reading!**

 **You're all lovely readers!**


	3. Ch 3: The Swamp

**Author Note: It has been a long time coming, chapter 3! Chapter 4 will be coming next then I will be heading back to work on "Finn's Soul". Don't worry though these chapters are planned to be more or less than 4000 words so hopefully that will be filling enough. Haha hope you all enjoy. You're all lovely readers.**

 **P.S: Hope a lot of you have watched the Island episodes of Adventure Time, because some info or characters may go over your head if you haven't, just to let you know haha.**

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Finn awoke to the morning sunlight trying desperately to shine into the ravine him and Cleo were sleeping in. He sat up slowly only to find he was pulled back into the rocks below him roughly, causing him to yelp and look to see what had a hold of his left arm. His face turned red in embarrassment when he saw Cleo holding onto his arm tightly as if it was a teddy bear, he could feel her breath against his skin and it caused a tingle to slither up Finn's spine as his heart beat increased. He freaking out, no clear idea on what happened, or how they two ended up like this. He was going to try to escape her grasp, paranoid she would become enraged by the situation if she awoke, but he stopped in his tracks when he heard a small whimper come from Cleo. He took a careful look at her face to see that she was crying in her sleep. This caused Finn to bite his lip and give in. He needed to comfort her, she did stay up and patch his wounds after the entire incident along with sharing a bit of her personal life with him, be it only her name, and how other kingdoms treated her. He laid completely down beside her and rubbed her head gently with a motherly touch to soothe her. " _I guess you even have nightmares huh?"_ Finn thought as he watched his companion fall into a deep sleep with a smile forming on her face, a murmur of comfort coming from her as she nuzzled further into Finn's arm. It made him remember his adoptive mother and how she would always sing a lullaby and be there for Finn when he had a bad dream or was afraid and upset. He wished for her then, he felt more afraid and upset then he ever had in his entire life. He knew though that he couldn't be that selfish, Cleo had no one that Finn could think of, she seemed to be the definition of alone. He didn't like that, so for that moment no matter what happened when she awoke he would be there for her as a Hero and friend. Even if it meant getting his ass kicked or yelled at for the rest of the day he would bear with it.

It felt like an hour too Finn as he pretended to sleep, trying to remain calm as he felt each movement of Cleo, ignoring every one of his instinct he had in this situation to avoid the wrath of the horned girl clinging to him. " _This is the worst idea ever."_ Finn thought to himself, beginning to contemplate trying to escape until he felt Cleo shift around more than usual and groan as she began to awaken from her slumber. "What the heck!?" She half whispered as she scuttled away from Finn quickly. He thought his cover was blown or he was going to get it until he heard what Cleo said next. "Did I get attracted to the heat of his body in my sleep? I was wondering why I sleep well… Wait. Did that jackass human fall asleep on watch?" She questioned herself out loud in an annoyed attitude, but Finn didn't care too much, he was more interested in the fact that she used him as a body pillow, which caused him to almost blow his cover in a fit of laughter. "I should go gather some of the gear I hid nearby. I'm glad I was paranoid enough to make several stashes around Ooo." She continued to speak to herself, her voice slowly fading as Finn heard her walk away. He sat there pretending to sleep until he was sure she was nowhere nearby before he opened his eyes and sat up. "She sure likes to talk to herself huh?" Finn asked himself before he sighed at the realization that he talks to himself a lot as well.

Cleo was walking up the slope in the cliff of the ravine until she reached the top, unaware of Finn being awake. She marched boldly through the dangerous terrain surrounding the ravine for miles, when she reached the point where the terrain turned to swampland she let out a sigh as she looked out at her goal. A massive old cypress tree reaching high above all the others, she had made a stash of loot she snagged when she was thirteen after a raid into the ruins of human civilization. The group she went in with were separated from her half way through. She only could assume that they were devoured by Oozers by the sound of screams. She told them not to be foolish and create any disturbance, but who would listen to a thirteen year old? A decision that cost them their lives and she was smart enough to escape to high ground in a collapsed skyscraper. She slowly ventured further into the ruins hopping to scavenge anything of value that would help her to escape the hell hole she winded up in. As she went further up the destroyed fragile tower of concrete and steel she encountered a mass grave of human remains, along with an occasional Oozer. It was no problem for her though, with the massive amount of rubble and open walls leading to a thirty story fall it was easy to trick an Oozer to stumble over a cliff leading to its demise below. Once the room was clear she went to checking every container and corpse for anything of value, she found a few gold bars in a cracked open safe with a charred skeleton, as well as an old handgun and ammunition for it. The grand prize she found though was a serrated military combat knife with advanced tech implemented in the blade. The blade was made out of reinforced titanium well the grip was made out of carbon fiber. The best part about the weapon she found was the fact it could generate an energy blade, capable of slashing through even a six foot thick beam of solid steel as if it was butter. Other than that she found piles of clothes and several other odds and ends, some of the clothes were the ones she wore to this day, but the rest were all sizes for men. It was difficult for her to escape the city ruins that day, she had to wait until the Oozers dispersed which took several terrifying hours of her young life. By the time she managed to escape with her loot the moon was high in the sky as the world withered into hibernation under the night sky. Afterwards she would take shelter in the cypress tree where her leftover loot was to be stored.

She let out a sigh and rubbed her left horn as she kicked a stone to the far end of the swamp, watching it sink into the depths before she saw a massive serpentine ripple dash towards the disturbance in the water before going still once more. "Great a Swamp King now lives in this area… A big one at that." She could feel the tension begin to rise as she imaged the monster in the depths of the murky black veil of the swamp. She and Finn had no weapons so taking on the Swamp King would be asking for a visit from Death himself. She bit her pale lip as she tried to devise a plan. An idea clicked into her train of thought as she saw how close the smaller cypress trees were to one another. " _Maybe I could sneak past the beast if I climb and go across the tree tops."_ She was sure it was her best option, but she was terrified because of the fact that if she fell it would spell her doom. She took a deep breath as she cleared her mind for several minutes. She had no other choice, they couldn't risk visiting any settlements or villages at the moment with the threat of their cover being blow with how easy the two could be identified. If they also tried to transverse the swamps without supplies they would die within seconds as well.

"Fuck it, I am Bandit Princess, I have been doing risky shit like this all my life and im still living and breathing!" She exclaimed silently to herself to create a façade of bravery. She jumped up into a cypress near the shore line and scouted out her path, slowly crossing from a tree limb large enough for her to walk to the next with careful steps. She could feel the rough wood against her feet through her stockings. She felt immediate regret for not wearing any footwear as she felt her foot slide from under her on a tree limb half way from her goal. She managed to catch herself and grip the pale limb tightly until she could regain her balance and confidence. She continued moving forward with caution, not daring to look down into the murky depths below. She felt a great wave of horror crush her spirit when she reached a gap she had to jump. "I can do this, I can do this, I can do this!" She repeated this too herself as she gained the nerve to make a leap across too the next branch. She made the jump, feeling relief fill her chest, which sunk back into horror as a loud crack echoed through the swamp, she had broken the tree limb she leapt for, she could feel herself falling and screaming, watching the tree limb snap away from the cypress in slow motion until she was submerged in the foul swamp water. She resurfaced quickly as adrenaline and fear consumed her being. She was standing in the muck filled water, sure the remnants of twigs and branches were tearing holes into her stockings as she felt them against the soles of her feet. She looked around with a crazed expression looking for movement. She found what she was looking for a massive ripple, the beasts back rising out of the water, revealing a massive scared reptilian back, like a crocodile that was fifty feet long, except the scales were a disgusting orange that matched the foulness of the harsh swampland around it. Bright glowing red eyes the sizes of fists could be seen blazing through the murky water with hunger as it approached closer to Cleo with ever increasing speed. She felt another scream rise up out of her chest, she was sure she could see Death waiting to welcome her to the dead worlds as a massive crocodile like mutant with four eyes and thousands of dagger like massive teeth rose from the water, its jaws ready to snap down on its prey and cause unending suffering even when it could swallow her whole.

In a blur of motion a Figure with a white bear cap was slamming their right fist into the rough hide of the Swamp King's head, causing it to let out a blood chilling hiss like roar of fury as its it was slammed into the muck below, its jaws shut just short of Cleo before a wave created by the beasts entire weight crashing into the water helped propel her to the shore. She was in complete shock as she saw Finn with a cocky grin on his face, his signature bear cap hiding his golden blonde hair well he had his blue hoodie zipped up, dried blood stains still on the jacket. His arm looked more mechanized, almost a complete replica of a human arm, yet it was made out of advanced metals and technology she couldn't even dare think of seeing anywhere in Ooo. "Don't fuck with my Princess lizard breath!" Finn screamed, not giving a care in the world about what he said before he avoided a sharp scaled tail from tearing his innards out. The Swamp King was going berserk on Finn who treated it as a game, laughing with an obnoxious grin on his face as he jumped from each of the tree limbs above the monster with ease before delivering another devastating blow with his mechanized arm. " _He is more of a monster than the actual monster here. Sadly he won't be able to kill it with raw strength alone, the hide is too thick, he needs a weapon!"_ Cleo thought to herself as she watched the situation in front of her in awe. She was correct though, each punch Finn delivered only stunned the Swamp King, and Finn began to notice it quickly as his smile faded into a serious facial expression. Finn was caught off guard when he slammed into the trunk of a dead tree, allowing the Swamp King the slam its body against Finn, launching him towards the massive cypress like a ragdoll as the tree trunk shattered like fine china, its remains disappearing into the murky swamp water. The reptilian beast was about to rush towards Finn to finish him off well he was weakened, a low rumbly hiss echoing from its throat. Suddenly a rock slammed into its left most eye, causing it to yelp from the sudden pain to its sensitive organ. It twirled around in fury to see Cleo with a sharp toothed grin on her face, obviously hiding her doubt in the new plan she made. "Hey vomit skin come and get me!" She screamed out towards the monster as she threw another rock at it from the shoreline. She then yelled to Finn as the Swamp King was focused on her. "Hey dumbass get the knife from a person sized hole in the tree! You can pierce its hide with it!" Finn was now on his feet, albeit a bit wobbly. He still followed Cleo's instruction, climbing the tree quickly towards a hole matching Cleo's description. To Cleo's dismay however the Swamp King was much smarter than she lead on, as it immediately twirled around in the water back towards Finn and tried to follow after him, its jaw just short of a few seconds to being able to reach the human as he crawled into the hole. It was about to try and make a break for it, sensing its impending doom until low humming sound filled the air as Finn jumped out of the tree holding the combat knife Cleo had acquired, a blue energy flow along the blade edge present and being the source of the humming. Finn quickly dashed towards the Swamp King which tried to turn on Finn and tear him to pieces with its teeth. Too its disappointment Finn slammed the blade into the side of its snout, allowing him to maneuver himself out of the way of the sudden bite before he slammed his mechanized fist through the beast's inner right eye, a burst of blood and pained wails coming from the monster. Finn then yanked the blade out of the Swamp Kings orange scaled hide before steading himself on the beast as it thrashed about in pain, sending waves of water everywhere before a loud thump filled the air as the energy knife pierced the skull and hide of the beast, easily cutting into the center of its brain and delivering death. Finn was panting from the fast paced movement as he removed the knife and jumped away from the corpse as it sank into the muck, as if the swamp was reclaiming the corpse for itself. Finn sat next to Cleo on the shore, the two both drenched in foul smelling swamp water. This got a laugh from Finn before Cleo punched him roughly in the arm. "You must be crazier than me, but you did good partner." She praised Finn as a sharp toothed grin followed up as she patted down her wet hair. "Thanks Cleo." Is what Finn said in return, his teen body still coursing with adrenaline from the fight. "This blade is really cool though, hope you don't mind me calling dibs on it." As Finn said this Cleo gave him a glare before finally sighing in defeat, she knew he was more skilled with bladed weapons than she was. She also didn't want to trust her new partner with a firearm without any practice. Her curiosity was rekindled as her eyes crossed over Finn's mechanized arm once more. "So mind explaining why your flesh covered arm turned into a super high tech prosthetic arm?" She asked the question with the tone of someone who had woken up on the wrong side of bed in the morning as she pointed at Finn's mechanized right arm. Finn only let out a chuckle and scratched the back of his head before he explained the origins of his new right arm. "Well you see when I went to find the last surviving humans with Susan and Jake I ended up meeting my actual mother when we found them on several islands far from Ooo. She had uploaded her consciousness to a server farm and several hundred robots to save the last of the human population on the islands from a disease, she was a helper, someone who; well helped everyone. After convincing her of the good in the outside world she wanted to help me in any way she could to return home, since The Guardian, a massive robot prevented anyone from entering or leaving the islands. After we disabled it and left my mom gave me one last thing on the ship as a birthday present for all the birthdays she had missed. An advanced arm, much better than the one… The one Bubblegum made me. Among many of the features the best one is that is has the ability to cloak itself to look like a normal arm. Let me show you." As Finn bore out the story to the interested bandit he seemed to have a hurt expression at the mention of Bubblegum. Yet it faded as soon as he continued to describe the arms features. He then pressed a smooth circular panel on the left side of his wrist, causing the arm to be surrounded by a field of netted blue holographic hexagons before it cloaked into a perfectly normal looking arm.

Cleo was honestly impressed as well as a bit curious about the Mechanized arm and this rumored Human settlement Finn mentioned, but she decided not to bring it up for now, in case it was a sensitive subject to her partner in crime. She stood up and stretched, after what seemed minutes of talking and catching breaths she needed to gather the rest of the loot so the two could get on the move and figure out a plan on how to deal with their tarnished names and find out who is responsible for such accusations against them.

Finn and Cleo were marching through the muck filled swamp, their feet sinking in slowly with each step, they each had a pack on their backs with their supplies. Cleo now had small brown steel toed boots that fit her perfectly, and were much more comfortable than walking with only stockings on her feet through a swamp. Their destination was a hidden cavern deep in the swamps that Cleo had converted into a hideout in case she needed it one day. She stated as they began to pack up that she was the only one who knew of its existence and how to get inside. It wasn't too far from a few settlements and villages shut off from the rest of Ooo, so the two would be able to keep a low profile as long as they were careful about their identities. Finn had the energy knife strapped to his leg well Cleo had what she called an M1911 handgun in a pistol holster strapped to her hip. Finn honestly had no clue about the weapon nor did he care that much, but he decided to go along with Cleo's affection towards the weapon by pretending to show interest when she mentioned anything about it as they trudged through the swamp. When Cleo finally stopped the two were outside of a large hillside covered in ivy and overgrown roots. Finn wondered why they had stopped when Cleo reached into the darkness of several roots as she spoke. "Should be around here somewhere….. Hmmm… Ah! I got it!" She exclaimed with a strange joyful tone as a barely audible click came from somewhere she had reached into, which in turn caused a section of the stone hillside to open like a gateway, to reveal a lighted stairway passage going downward into what Finn could only guess was the hideout Cleo mentioned. "Welcome to our new home Finn." Cleo stated as her mischievous filled olive green eyes met Finn's hopeful stare. A smiled formed on the pairs faces as they ventured down, Cleo pulling a lever nearby that caused the section of the hillside to return to its original position as if it had never moved Leaving the two to explore their hideout in the lighting system set up along the walls, as if creating a path for the hero and the bandit to travel down for the answers they hungered for.

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 **End Note: Well that was chapter three, I hope you all liked it I know I did haha. If there is anything you readers may have a problem with, be it plot, or anything else please let me know in the reviews, I do read them and take note on any constructive criticism you all may have, because you're all so awesome haha. I wrote this real late so I am really tired, so sweet dreams you lovely readers! XD**


	4. Ch 4: Plans & Disguises

**Author Note: Here it is, Chapter 4. Let us see how far the two opposites will go down the spiral they have found themselves in. I hope you all enjoy this chapter, after this I shall be working on Finn's Soul even more and probably focus on that for several chapters. I do plan to give this story a lot of thought and planning when I'm not busy though. You're all lovely readers!**

 **P.S: I plan on going back and fixing any errors in both of my stories, since I noticed some errors that made me metally facepalm myself hahaha. XD**

 **Edit: Sorry for any notification confusion any of you readers may have gotten, I was unsure about the tittle so I changed it until I found the perfect one.**

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Finn felt his eyes slowly adjusting to the dim lighting after a few minutes inside the hideout passage. The two were now at the bottom of the steps going into a straight passage that opened up into a well-lit hexagon shaped room. The walls were carved away to be mostly flat with a few bumps or cuts into the natural stone. Finn was impressed by the two story room that was the size of all the rooms in the tree fort combined. Finn noticed doors straight across on the other side of the room and to the left and right ends of the rooms. The one straight ahead was a hydraulic steel door that Finn could only guess was five feet thick, a small keypad was on the wall next to the door, the other two doors were made of designed oak.

Finn's curiosity was rising at the sight of the doors but he was so focused on that he didn't notice the rest of the room until Cleo walked past Finn and slumped onto a blue family sized couch against the wall between the left most door and the hydraulic steel door. A loud sigh escaped Cleo after she dropped the bag of loot from her stash and kicked off her boots, exposing her stocking covered feet. She began to investigate her stockings for damages, treating the simple piece of clothing as if it was made of gold. She let out what Finn could only guess was a half sigh of relief and laugh. Finn slumped the pack of loot he had off his shoulder near the entrance and looked around. Against the wall to the back right corner of the room was a complete kitchen with wooden cupboards, a stove, and refrigerator. Sadly besides the kitchen and couch the room was rather bland, a few crates and metal shelves cluttered into the free walls of the room and empty space of grey stone with a bright dome of light in the center of the ceiling lighting up the room. Finn felt a pebble smack against his chest, he looked with a raised eyebrow at Cleo who was giving Finn a stern stare. "Are you done?" Finn was confused at her question as her tone was a bit rude all of a sudden. "What? Why do you say that?" Finn asked trying to figure out what was wrong as the confusion was easily shown on his face. Cleo simply sighed before she rubbed her temples and got in his face. "Well first off, you almost died from gun shots, we had to sleep outside on rocks, we have not eaten since our escape, I almost died before you jumped in unarmed without thinking, and now here you are looking around dumbfounded like a fool with no plan!" Cleo was to the point of screaming by the time she reached the end of her list of problems, stress and frustration showing in both her tone and face. Finn was caught off guard and offended. Yet as the anger began to show his expression softened and he decided to agree with her as he approached her, Cleo backing up as her expression was mixed. "You're right I am a Fool, I jumped in as a meat shield, we did have to sleep on rocks, but we were alive, we did go without yet we remained safe, I did jump in unarmed without thinking, and yes I have no real plan yet. What can I say, I'm a hero at heart even when the world that I so lovingly protected and helped turned against me. You were there to help me… Even if it was for a selfish reason… Even if it was for your own gain…" Finn was not on the verge of tears as he continued to approach her, her back finally hitting the wall and Finn placing his hands on the wall to the left and right of her. Cleo's olive green eyes matching Finn's stare and softening as he continued to speak. "Even if you leave me to die in the end…. You choice to save me when no one else would, and I plan to return the favor one hundredth fold, I promise that. So even if I don't have a plan now doesn't mean we can't make one together or later." The two stood in silence now, their eyes locked for a solid five minutes as they both processed what had just transpired. Cleo let out a sigh of defeat before she closed her eyes. "Alright I get it partner. Let's work together to figure this out… I'm sorry lashing my frustration out on you, but we are in one hell of shit hole with everything going on." Finn took his hands off the wall with grin which Cleo returned before they both began to laugh, his top right canine and bottom left incisor missing from his set of white teeth. Unlike Finn Cleo had a perfect set of teeth albeit sharp and pointed.

Cleo let out a much needed sigh of relief before she punched Finn in the arm, causing him to let out a complaint of discomfort. "That's what you get for pinning me against a wall like this is some drama." She then walked off to the left most door in the room and opened it, Finn didn't get to see what was inside before she closed the door behind her right after opening it. Finn stood in silence for a minute before he heard a muffled yell from Cleo. "The other door is your bedroom! I'm pretty sure I don't need to show you how to use a shower so go clean up! We both smell of monster blood, swamp, and body odor!" Finn only laughed at her list of stenches before he walked away from her door towards his and ignored the snide remarks that followed after his laughter. He opened the oak door on the far right side of the room revealing a room a bit bigger than his bedroom in the tree house with the exception of the natural tree wood and wooden planks being replaced with a rectangular stone room, a blue carpet covering the floor. The bed was a queen size bed that tucked into the corner of the room, a decorative dark wood bedframe holding up the black sheet covered mattress, a six drawer dresser at the end of the bed. Finn became more surprised when he found a fully supplied master bathroom in the room as well. " _I guess this is what Cleo was referring too when she told me to clean up."_ Finn thought to himself before he took a curious whiff of his armpits and clothes, feeling vomit rise up in his throat as he hacked from the stench. Forcing the acidic liquid back into his stomach with a gulp he took a few deep breaths before practically tearing his clothes off and throwing them to the side before he entered the standup shower, sliding the glass door open and twisting a round decretive knob on the wall until a stream of water came out of the shower head. He tested the water with his hand as he twisted a second knob that caused the water to either become hotter or colder. Finn spent a minute on the temperature until he found a comfortable balance. Steam formed along the glass as the hot water sprayed down into the shower and was sucked into the drain, never to be seen again. Finn allowed his body to be slowly consumed by the stream of water. It was hot on his skin at first, but he slowly began to sink into a trance as his body adjusted to the hot water. He couldn't help thinking of the events that he is not the center of, his brain slowly recalling every dreadful moment perfectly. Finn was glad he was in the shower, because the horrible memories faded out of mind as if being cleansed along with the grim, dirt, blood and mud that covered his body. All that remained was careful plans about the future and on his body only bruises, and scars from the now healed bullet holes. Finn washed his body for what seemed to him like several hours before he turned off the shower and stood naked dripping water from his wet golden blonde hair in the shower before he opened the sliding door and began to dry off. His mind felt numb the entire time until he realized he had no clean clothes. He let out a disgruntled sigh before he walked into the bedroom from the bathroom, feeling exposed and bashful even though he was alone. He opened the dresser at the end of the bed. He felt more comfortable immediately after he put on a pair of black boxers that fit to his body very well. He was glad he found the pair that fit him, because the other pairs in the dresser appeared to be either too small or too large to fit him.

After what Finn could only assume was fifteen or sixteen minutes of scouring through the dresser he was thankfully able to find a pair of clothes that fit. He was sitting on the edge of his new bed as he held his old, torn, burnt, and dirtied hoodie, his polar bear hat causing him to be filled with a slight amount of irony, something he had since he was a baby and was a trademark of his would have to be left behind. If he wore it now he would be threating him and Cleo's safety greatly. He left the hoodie to hang on the post of the bedframe as he let his eyes scan his new outfit. He was wearing a maroon t-shirt, a pair of tan cargo pants and black socks with a black leather combat boots. He was also wearing a black fur lined cloak to hide his body features and add protection from the weather well he also had a black leather surgical mask to hide his identity even better with the cloaks hood. He clipped the cloak's metal pin and he walked to the door with his dagger still strapped to his leg. He took a deep breath and opened the door startling himself and Cleo who he almost walked into as she stumbled back, blinking several times to register what happened before she gave Finn an agitated snarl. "Jeez which one of us is the princess here? I thought you were making your own clothes for peats sake." Cleo spoke with agitation before it was defused by Finn's laughter. "Ya I guess I was taking my time, sorry about that Cleo. So what do you think of my new outfit?" Cleo rose an eyebrow before she finally noticed Finn had actually changed his clothes, she could feel her face get slightly hot as she took note on how the clothes matched Finn and made him seem handsome in Cleo's eyes. She didn't realize how long she was lost in thought until Finn waved his pale hand in front of her eyes. "Err, Looks nice. Thankfully you found things to help hide your identity." Cleo said with a hint of pride towards her companion. Finn took notice that she had a similar cloak too Finn's besides the fact her cloak was tan and there were holes for her horns to fit through and not make Cleo uncomfortable with the hood up. "You look nice too." Finn spoke in response as a joy filled expression crossed his face.

Finn was waiting for Cleo by the closed stone gateway that was the entrance and exit to their hidden hideout in a hillside in the middle of the swamplands. He was waiting for Cleo who was getting ammunition from the vault for her weapon. The two planned to go into a nearby village disguised as travelers looking for information after leaving their secluded homeland. They hoped that the village had no information on the two partners in crime, but they would have to know sooner or later what was going on, and what they were up against. Finn took a deep breath as the thought of being found out or leaving a clue for those who wanted the two dead made him vision a dark possibility. He saw in his mind his blood covered body, filled with holes and stab wounds leaking blood like a fountain. He could see a crowd of figures, steel humanoid robots, and assassins around him. He could also pick out the faces of rulers and friends with disgusted or cold expressions towards him and a lifeless corpse a few meters away, glazed olive green eyes catching his gaze as his once trusted friend and leader stood over the corpse of Cleo. Cleo's body was covered in blood, the crimson liquid cascading against Cleo's pale white skin along with gunshot wounds, bruises, cuts and an obvious stab wound to the heart. The ruler of candy had a dark ice cold stare as if she was staring at trash on the ground. Her pink skin and gown covered in blood splatters as a droplet of the crimson liquid slithered down her sword and dropped onto the corpse with a loud drip that seemed to echo in Finn's ears as the feeling of betrayal filled Finn's being with animus towards Princess Bonnibel Bubblegum.

Finn phased back into reality as he opened his eyes and turned his head to look down the stairwell to see the bandit walking up towards him, several metallic clips strapped to the belt of her pistol holster. Finn was intent on avoiding the fate he imagined in his mind no matter the cost. He did wish he could rely on his brother, but he knew that Jake would be kept on the highest surveillance since the yellow dog was Finn's brother and best friend in the entire universe, Finn didn't want to say multiverse since he was sure Prismo was Jake's best friend in that regard, which surprised Finn as he thought about it. He was taken out of his thoughts by Cleo slapping him across the back before she yanked the lever that she had pulled before to close the hidden entrance, but this time the entrance began to open. Cleo quickly walked out towards the other lever hidden in the darkness of several roots well Finn waited nearby on what little land there was in the deepest parts of the swamps, his combat boots still sunk slightly into the wet ground. Cleo reached into the darkness of the roots once again and felt the lever she was looking for, pulling it down before the gateway returned to its façade with a low rumble.

"We need to be careful, don't do anything that will get us noticed. We have about two thousand and twenty seven gold coins that should buy us equipment, tools, and supplies to help with our survival in the hideout. Other than that we need to find a form of income, so ask around the village market if any of the merchants need any supplies from the swamp, such as ingredients or raw materials that they can't acquire due to the dangers of the swamp. This village is a prime target for a gang of vandals that picks on the towns people for anything that they got, just because they can. Keep your head low… and for the love of Glob please try to avoid the thugs." Cleo sternly stated their object for a third time in only the span of five minutes as they marched through the muck of the swamplands Cleo leading the way and cutting any overgrown swamp flora in their path with a machete she found in the hideout. Finn on the other hand slammed his right fist into any small monsters that grew too close and aggressive towards them, and when larger monsters came slithering towards them filled with malice and bloodlust, they were utterly butchered by Finn's energy dagger, cutting them down so fast that his clothing remained free from the brutality he caused as blood rained from the monsters. Finn could only assume he had killed eight small monsters and three bigger ones as an hour passed, the sun in its peak hours bore down on the swamp and two travelers. A village came into sight as the swamp trees cleared, allowing Finn and Cleo to see a decent sized village of lizard people, in ragged and stitched clothing. Finn could tell most of the people were farmers, but he saw a market where several lizard men and woman were selling everything Finn could think of besides actual weapons, he was curious why, but then he found his answer as he spotted an giant orange skinned muscular four eyed humanoid with curly brown hair and a sheathed great sword strapped to his back. He had a coat made of furs, as well as a pair of green tight pants that were short enough to expose his oversized calf muscles, the pants had a zigzag design on them. His bottom left eye had paint around it that made it look like a black eye. He was shaking an old lizard man like a piggy bank, holding him up by the straps of his overhauls with two massive fingers as he held his open left hand below the man as gold and other sorts of possessions fell into the mutant's massive hand. He began to speak with a disgustingly conceited expression on his face, his tone deep with an Asian accent. "You better pay up old fart, because you don't the boss to find out that you trash bags have been underpaying for your protection." The Farmer's scaly wrinkled face grew pale before he emptied his pockets voluntarily of any leftover cash as he stuttered in a weak and exhausted tone in reply. "O-Ok Tromo! I will pay up, please forgive me!" The giant mutant named Tromo bellowed in self-satisfaction as he left with thunderous steps.

" _I get the feeling I'm not going to get along with this gang of thugs…"_ Finn thought to himself in distaste as the two disguised criminals walked into the village, unaware they were being watched. A woman was kneeling in the tree line on the outskirts of the village. She had long green leaves for hair and light green eyes with vertical dark green pupils, she had turquoise colored skin. She was had a tan hood and black mask, a pair of tree branch antlers with a few leaves sprouting from her head through holes in her hood. She had a black tattered cape with a quiver packed with green arrows strapped to her back. She was wearing a purple shirt, a black belt and tan pants with long eggplant colored heeled boots over her pants. Another prominent feature of her was a tan leather glove on her right hand. She was not fooled by her prey's disguise, recognizing his scent and aura easily with her talents as a huntress and a wizard. She had a serious frown cross her face with emotionless eyes as she decided to watch her prey longer until she could swoop in for the kill when the Bandit Princess was out of her way. The woman felt her heart twist in her chest as her emotions battled a war over a simple matter. She could feel the madness cross her mind until she remembered her cause. "Don't grow soft Huntress Wizard… not even for the one you love…" She felt her heart twist again, but refused to let herself grow soft as she only saw what was in front of her; criminals and prey that needed to be put down.

Huntress wizard held her left palm out as she used levitation magic to hold one of her arrows vertically in front of her face, the arrow surrounded by a transparent lavender aura. Her face had a sorrow filled expression before the arrow passed over it, being replaced by cold emotionless expression before she fired the arrow at high speeds behind her without batting an eye. A Swamp King several hundred meters away was blown in half, a massive circular hole through its armored hide and flesh. It collapsed into the swamp as the green arrow that led to its demise floated back towards its owner and placed itself back into the quiver it originally came from. Huntress Wizard fused into the wood of the tree and disappeared to track and stalk her prey until they were at they were exhausted and weak; until they were easy pickings.

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 **End Note: Well I'm not going near trees for some time hahahaha! Hope you all enjoyed the chapter and are looking forward to more in the future. I am going to work on "Finn's Soul" next so feel free to message and review as you all like, I will try my best to get back to all of you. Your all lovely readers!**


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